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The Downingtown Gates of Hell
The Downingtown Gates of Hell is a short film/documentary that revolves around the fabled Gates of Hell, an urban legend in Downingtown, Pennsylvania. The film is written and directed by Scott Pincus, and serves as his final project for his film class, Media Arts I. It was one of two major projects Scott made for the class, with the other being his midterm film, Thrill of the Hunt. The film is a hybrid of a short film narrative and a documentary. Scott hoped to make a film about the Gates of Hell for some time, though he didn't officially pursue the project until November 2017. The film covers the background behind the legend and how it's seen today, while also viewing it from a narrative perspective. Gabe Sagherian, Alex Fanelli, Chris Lombardo, Sean Larkin and Bailey Gonzaga all appear in the film. Filming took place from late November to early December, and the project was released on December 8. The project received a positive reception, with Scott's film professor commending him for the project while his TA criticized various elements of it. Plot The narrator (Gabe Sagherian) explains how Downingtown, Pennsylvania is home to numerous urban legends, with the most infamous being the fabled Gates of Hell. As shown in a dramatization, it's said that back in the 1950s, a deranged father (Sean Larkin) murdered his family on their property in the woods. He hung their corpses on the gates at the bottom of their long driveway, before killing himself as well. For half a century, the abandoned property was visited by thrillseekers, and possibly even cults and Satanists. When construction of a new neighborhood began in 2004, nearly all the structures on the property were torn down, and giant rocks were put in place of the gates. The narrator explains how people still search for the property today, yet obviously find nothing. A dark, still lake is the most prominent remainder of the property, along with a mile-long clearing that was once the driveway. A dramatization of two thrillseekers (Alex Fanelli and Chris Lombardo) has them encounter two devil worshippers (Gabe Sagherian and Bailey Gonzaga) near the lake at night. The co-narrator (Alex Fanelli) uses historical images on Google Earth to view the property over the last twenty-five years. Using the images, he determines the exact location of the property's structures, after which he and the narrator go off in search of them. They visit the lake, as well as the sites of the gates and driveway, before heading to Parker Drive - a residential street which now sits where the original property once was. The narrator points out exactly where the original house used to be, as well as a small stone wall, which once sat next to the pool on the property. An interviewed resident explains how the property was owned by the Zappacosta family back in the 1940s, and they sold it fifteen years earlier when the new neighborhood went under construction. Though familiar with the "Gates of Hell" legend, the resident doubts that a murder actually occurred on the property. As the narrator and co-narrator look at debris left behind after the property's demolition, they look at where the house once stood. The narrator closes the film, stating that though a murder may not have actually occurred on the property, it's still a very eerie place, and the legend will live on for generations to come. Cast *Gabe Sagherian stars as the narrator, who explains the legend behind the Gates of Hell. *Alex Fanelli stars as the co-narrator, who helps the narrator find the location of the Gates of Hell property. *Chris Lombardo as Chris, a thrillseeker who has a supporting role in the film. *Sean Larkin as the deranged father, who is seen in several flashback scenes. *Bailey Gonzaga as a devil worshipper, who resides near the dark lake. The film marked Bailey's acting debut. Gabe and Alex also have supporting roles as both a thrillseeker and road cultist, while Gabe also appears as a devil worshipper during the film's night scene at the lake. Scott can be heard speaking to the resident during the interview, though like the resident he is uncredited. Production Early Ideas For some time, Scott hoped to make a documentary of sorts about the legend behind the Gates of Hell. In short - many years ago, a disturbed man shot his family before killing himself, all of which occurred on a large property deep in the woods. Within the last decade, however, much of the property was torn down, leaving only the legend behind the incident. Gabe Sagherian and Scott Pincus took two hikes to find the location of the original property - first on November 22, 2015, and - by coincidence - exactly two years later in 2017. Until that year, Scott never made an effort to make a documentary about the legend. Pre-Production In November 2017, Scott was assigned his final project for his film class. Pre-production on the film was extremely rushed, and though Scott enjoyed the project's original concept, he ultimately decided to save it for another time. Instead, he opted to make a short documentary about the Gates of Hell. At this time, the original concept for the project is undisclosed. While working on the project, Scott messaged Conrad Zimmer, a filmmaker who released a short documentary about the Gates of Hell in October 2007. The video, which has over 24,000 views on YouTube, is perhaps the most well-known video about the Gates. Zimmer provided Scott with some information about the legend. Scott says their documentaries will be "fairly different", with his instead focusing more on what the property looks like now, and delving into how the legend is perceived today. Production Filming for the project began late on the night of November 24, with Alex Fanelli, Chris Lombardo, Gabe Sagherian and Bailey Gonzaga present for filming. Bailey makes his acting debut in the film. He was previously cast as an antagonist in Bread's Crumbs 4: Mass Consumption, ''but left the project due to scheduling issues. Scriptwriting for the project began on November 26, with filming set to continue and wrap in early December. On December 1, Scott began contacting Jason Bowman, a filmmaker who wrote a documentary on the Gates of Hell during his second year of college. Scott hopes to gain more information on the legend from Jason, who agreed to supply information on the Gates of Hell. Filming continued for the project on December 2, with Alex Fanelli helping Scott during the shoot. Filming wrapped on December 3, with Gabe Sagherian and Alex Fanelli partaking in the shoot. Sean Larkin also participated, and thus joined the film's cast. On December 4, the film's release date was confirmed as December 8. The same day, the title was confirmed to be "The Downingtown Gates of Hell". Editing and scoring for the project took place the week of December 4, and the film was completed and released on December 8. Reception Reactions to the film on YouTube have been positive, sporting a 98% rating with 51 likes and 1 dislikes. In terms of the number of likes, this is Scott's most well-received short film. A screening for the film was expected to take place during Scott's last film class on December 8, but they never got around to watching it. Scott received his grade for the project on December 19, and was given a 20.5/25, or an 82%. On the rubric, his TA said "the use of some sound and visual were cliché", though this wasn't explained further. He added that some information was repeated multiple times, but there was a "significant amount of time and research displayed". In comparison to Scott's midterm film, ''Thrill of the Hunt, his score for the final went down slightly. On December 18, Scott's professor, Catherine Pancake, emailed him about the project. She praised its use of production design, different styles, and shrewd use of music. Pancake was present for the screening of Scott's midterm film, Thrill of the Hunt, and said the final showed great progress in comparison. The film spiked in popularity in July 2019. From July 19 to July 24, the film experienced an unexpected increase in views, gaining over 1,500 views in a week. It currently has over 3,300 views. Music : See Media Arts I Soundtracks As he did with Thrill of the Hunt, Scott wrote the score for the film. Scott created several themes for the project, including two sinister motifs that play throughout the film. The first theme is introduced during the film's main titles; it is reprised numerous times in the film, including in the flashback scene. The second motif plays during scenes at the lake. The score for the film was released on February 1, 2018, along with the score for Thrill of the Hunt. A total of twelve tracks were included in the score, including one finished track that wasn't used in the film. The score release also featured several extended tracks, which were edited down for the film itself. Trivia *The first, and as of now only LordStarscream100 film to feature Bailey Gonzaga. *The location where the Gates of Hell used to be is where Eric summons the demon Saathi in The Legend of the Creepy Guy in the Woods. *The release of this film made 2017 the year where Scott released the most short films. He released eight short films in 2014 and 2016, and nine in 2017 (not including the help desk commercial). *This is the second LordStarscream100 short film to be released in December, the other being How to Avoid a Creepy Guy in the Woods in December 2013. *The film takes on a similar format to The EdTech Enterprise, in which the narrator speaks directly to the camera and moves the film along. Coincidentally, Gabe served this role in both projects. *Dakota Markle was cast to appear in the film, but had to drop out of the project at the last minute. *This was Scott's first time making a documentary project. *The film serves as Gabe Sagherian's thirtieth collaboration with Scott Pincus. Category:The Downingtown Gates of Hell Category:Short Films Category:2017 Storyline Category:Standalone Films Category:School Projects Category:College Projects